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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29186835">Balance</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account'>orphan_account</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Cobra Kai (Web Series)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>M/M, Non-binary Eli, Other, Overly optimistic look at Demetri and Hawk post season 3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 14:00:01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,944</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29186835</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Since the combining of Miyagi Do and Eagle Fang, Demetri and Eli have been struggling training. Daniel has an idea to help them. </p>
<p>Or Demetri and Eli learn the wheel technique and train on the pond.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Demetri &amp; Eli "Hawk" Moskowitz, Demetri/Eli "Hawk" Moskowitz</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>63</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Balance</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I saw this concept floating around tumblr but didn't see a fic written so... here we are. Also enby Eli... cause I will let go of this headcanon literally never. And this is a very overly optimistic view on their friendship at all after season 3, but hey I'm here to write fluff not to hurt ya'll so... enjoy?</p>
<p>Also the formatting sucks and I can't fix it. x.x</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The dojo was full of life. Friends had been reunited. Despite their differences, they’d been able to come together and find common ground. It was peaceful. Except for two particular students. For Demetri and Eli, there was still a lot left unsaid, and both of them were uneasy. Daniel had picked up on this very quickly. He didn’t care for Eli at first, but after a week of teaching him, it was clear that this was truly a case of a good kid that was taught wrong. But he was learning. Meanwhile, the most unlikely of great students, Demetri, had flourished, and Daniel suspected it had a lot to do with Eli.<br/>
As he walked through watching pairs spar, there was clear hesitation between Eli and Demetri, both of them holding back much more than everyone else. Eli slowed every hit before they made contact, while Demetri refused to use any advantage he could levy. Johnny approached behind him and rolled his eyes.<br/>
“Hawk. You’re going easy on him. What’s gonna happen if Kylar jumps you both and you’ve gone soft because neither of you will hit each other?” He barked getting into Eli’s face. Daniel sighed.<br/>
“Sorry Sensei.”<br/>
“Johnny. Go easy on them, they’ve been through a lot,” Daniel said softly. Johnny scoffed.<br/>
“Yeah and they’re gonna go through a lot more if they get cornered with no backup. Aren’t you the one that says two people in sync should be stronger than twenty in a fight?” A lightbulb lit up over Daniel’s head.<br/>
“Demetri, Eli, you up for some special training?”<br/>
“This sounds like more work.”<br/>
“More work, but more reward. If you two can learn the wheel technique… you’ll never lose to Cobra Kai again.” Eli and Demetri looked to each other, seeming to have a wordless back and forth, before reaching consensus with a simultaneous nod.<br/>
“Johnny?”<br/>
“I’ll take care of em. Take those two.” Johnny turned back toward the class as Daniel pulled Eli and Demetri outside.<br/>
“All right, move with me,” Daniel said. They followed along slowly. As Daniel suspected, the pair moved in sync without him ever having to tell them to. Every move they made was together, like they shared thoughts without speaking. It shouldn’t have surprised Daniel. He’d talked with Demetri about Eli several times. In tears, Demetri had recalled when Eli could barely speak for themself, instead he had to be their voice. All the times Demetri had tried to stand up for Eli, but both of them ended up hurt.<br/>
Daniel was fascinated by how the two complimented each other. It was a strange lesson in yin and yang. Perhaps he noticed it more than even they had. Where Eli had a tough front, they were clearly soft and afraid on the inside. On the flip side, Demetri came off as weak and cowardly, but when push came to shove, despite being one of the less talented fighters, he was incredibly strong. They balanced each other out, where one had a weakness, the other had strength. Yet, they were able to sense each other’s movements, and without even noticing themselves, move together.<br/>
“I think you guys can move straight to the advanced training,” Daniel said.<br/>
“Advanced?” Eli asked. Daniel led them to the pond and took in a deep breath.<br/>
“All right. See the wooden circle? You’re going to stand on it, and move together, just like I showed you.”<br/>
“That’s insane,” Demetri replied. Eli rolled their eyes and grabbed Demetri by the shirt collar.<br/>
“Eli--”<br/>
“Come on. You want to get hurt again?” Demetri sighed.<br/>
“No.”<br/>
“Then we’re going to do what Sensei LaRusso says.” The pair dropped into the pond and moved to opposite sides of the circle. Eli planted their hands on the circle and waited for Demetri to match them. As soon as he was in position, they pulled themselves up together in perfect balance. Daniel was a little shocked. He knew they were on the same wavelength, but this was something beyond what he’d expected. But he wasn’t about to tell them that.<br/>
“So far so good. Now move. Together.” The two nodded together. They bowed together, then took up fighting positions. Daniel held his breath as they started to move, watching as they moved around the wheel in sync, punching together, kicking together, never once upsetting balance on the water. Every step Demetri took, Eli was with him. Even more shocking, at no point did Demetri, who was usually incredibly uncoordinated, stumble. When they reached the center facing each other again, Daniel noticed the whole class had filled out into the yard, and was watching as intently as he was. But Eli and Demetri saw nothing but each other, there was nothing else, no one else, in that dojo. They shared a soft smile, one that Daniel was used to seeing on Demetri’s face, but was entirely new on Eli’s. It felt like he was finally seeing who Eli was for the first time. They were oddly comfortable, and started to move toward each other, until they started to come back to earth, and suddenly, Demetri was painfully aware of everyone staring at him. He started to scramble off the circle, which caused it to rock. Eli tried to regain their balance, but it was gone and both of them landed in the water.<br/>
“Looks like they’ve got it. Someone wanna fish Hawk and Loudmouth out of that pond?” Johnny said with a smirk. Miguel and Sam hurried to the pond to help Demetri and Eli up. By the time they’d gotten there, Demetri was gasping for air on the side of the pond while Eli was shaking their hair out like a wet dog. Without taking a breath Eli pulled themself out of the water then turned to lift Demetri out. Both of them were still smiling despite the fall in the water. Once they were on their feet, Johnny turned to face the rest of the class.<br/>
“Fall in!” Eli and Demetri moved toward their spots, but Johnny stopped them.<br/>
“Not you two,” he said, then turned to the rest of them, “we’re going to test Sensei LaRusso’s training. Hawk, Demetri, prepare to defend yourselves.” Eli and Demetri stood back to back.<br/>
“Wait, Johnny this is--”<br/>
“Quiet! If they can’t defend themselves against their friends, how will they survive their enemies?”<br/>
“It’s supposed to be a last resort--”<br/>
“Sensei. We’ll do it,” Demetri said. Daniel nodded and backed up to stand with Johnny. The rest of the class circled them. Hawk took an offensive stance, their back to Demetri’s defensive one. The first one to come at them was Miguel, headed straight for Hawk. He landed a good hit, but as Eli and Demetri moved around, instead of Eli taking a second hit, Demetri deflected it. The rest of the class followed. Most of them were swinging primarily at Hawk, who was never overwhelmed thanks to Demetri’s near flawless defense. As Miguel instead tried to throw a punch at Demetri, Eli turned and got him in the side, sending him to the ground. Sam tried to sweep across Eli’s legs, but Demetri grabbed her and spun her away, causing her to trip over Miguel. Eli caught a punch from their right and sent them toward Demetri, who landed a kick to send them back. Next Eli leapt into the air, landing a double kick on two more as Demetri dodged blows from three students landing back to back again. Demetri grabbed Eli and spun them toward the three attacking him, causing them to let out a cry as they jabbed at one, elbow to the next, then dropped for a sweep on the last one, while Demetri landed the last punch on Chris. Everyone started getting back to their feet as Demetri and Eli turned to face each other in disbelief. Behind them Daniel was smiling.<br/>
“That was amazing guys,” Miguel said, “how did you do that?”<br/>
“They can feel each other’s movements. It’s… usually much more difficult to master.” Johnny laughed.<br/>
“Not if you were already in sync before you ever tried to fight. Anyway it’s getting late. Dismissed.” Eli and Demetri headed into the dojo to change out of their wet clothes. Johnny stopped them.<br/>
“The two of you have something. I don’t know what it is, but it’s strong. Don’t lose it again.”<br/>
“Yes Sensei,” Eli replied. Demetri only nodded. Everyone had cleared out as Demetri stripped off his wet shirt. Eli stopped.<br/>
“Hey… Dem… what Sensei Lawrence said…”<br/>
“About what?”<br/>
“About us being in sync before… it’s… weird isn’t it?” They asked, pulling off their shirt. Demetri stopped, turning to see the hawk tattoo on their back. A pang of fear struck through him. But then he saw the soft look on their face and knew he wasn’t in danger. Which of course replaced the fear with guilt. He swallowed all of it, and returned to the question.<br/>
“I used to speak for you Eli… it’s not that strange to think I could read your mind a little.” Demetri kicked off his very wet shorts and started digging through his bag for his spare clothes.<br/>
“You’re still afraid of me,” Demetri turned around, and met Eli’s eyes, “I know what you’re thinking sometimes too.”<br/>
“Look. I forgave you. But sometimes I don’t think and… I get scared you’re going to go back to Hawk…” Eli sighed.<br/>
“I don’t have split personality disorder Demetri, I have a nickname.”<br/>
“A nickname associated with you getting that haircut and turning into an asshole.” Demetri crashed into a bench, and started pulling on his jeans.<br/>
“You’re right. But… I don’t want to go back Dem. I can’t go back. I don’t want to be…” their hand brushed against their scar. They sat down beside Demetri.<br/>
“What do you want to be then Eli?” Their eyes locked. Eli leaned in close to his face, and in a rare switch, Demetri decided he was going to strike first. He closed the gap between them, lips crashing together. His hands tangled in Eli’s hair. It was starting to dry and was incredibly soft, despite the usual spikes. Eli wrapped their arms around Demetri’s neck and pulled back, forehead resting against Demetri’s.<br/>
“Can I be yours?”<br/>
“That’s not quite the answer I was looking for… but I suppose we can work on it.” Eli hugged Demetri tight.<br/>
“Wanna get dressed and go down to the card shop? We might make it in time to play if we hurry.” Demetri smiled and pulled his shirt over his head. As he turned away, Eli could only smile. They couldn’t believe that Demetri had just accepted their apology and let them back into his life without question. But Demetri had always been there. Even when no one else had accepted him, Demetri had. Demetri had always loved them, despite how their face looked, despite their struggle with their identity. Even when they’d completely lost who they were, Demetri remembered. They didn’t want to let their entire identity revolve around him, but he was the first one to support them, to stand up for them, and they’d never let themselves forget it again.<br/>
“You wanna get dressed, Hawk?” He asked. Eli smiled.<br/>
“You can call me Eli, Dem.” Demetri held out his hand to Eli. They confidently, but gently took it.<br/>
As they headed out of the dojo, Daniel was also heading out the gate.<br/>
“Hey. Great job today. You two make a great team,” he said.<br/>
“Thanks Sensei,” Demetri replied. They left the dojo, hand in hand, not afraid of anyone who could hurt them, as long as they had each other.</p>
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